Man who knowingly spread HIV to women sentenced to nine years in prison

Heather Curtis

WMAL.com

WASHINGTON (WMAL) – A man charged with knowingly spreading HIV to women he met on dating apps was sentenced to nine years in prison Friday.

Rudolph Smith, 37, is HIV positive but didn’t tell three women he had unprotected sex with that he had the virus. They all became infected. Rudolph was charged with three counts of Second Degree Assault and three counts of Knowingly Attempting to Transfer HIV. He entered an Alford plea in September, which is a type of guilty plea where the defendant doesn’t say he did it but admits there is enough evidence to convict him.

“While HIV is not what it was 15 years ago with effective treatments that now exist, these victims will be impacted by this defendant’s actions for the rest of their lives,” said Frederick County State’s Attorney Charles Smith.

After he’s released, Smith will serve five years probation.